


You Deserve the World

by ThePanicRoom



Category: A Series of Unfortunate Events (TV), A Series of Unfortunate Events - Lemony Snicket
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Angst with a Happy Ending, Esme is a raging lesbian, Esme suffers a lot im so sorry baby, F/F, Fake Character Death, Kidnapping, Only the characters tagged appear and are a constant factor, This is literally my favorite ASOUE work that i’ve done, ooc tbh, please appreciate this, pretty much everyone dies :’)), the fire
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-04
Updated: 2018-08-06
Packaged: 2019-06-21 12:26:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,142
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15557682
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThePanicRoom/pseuds/ThePanicRoom
Summary: Esme Squalor was cursed. Ever since she was born, she was cursed to have her entire life fall apart, and at first; she didn’t mind it, but after the death of Beatrice Baudelaire, she knew her whole world would change…





	1. The Start of it All

i.   
Esme/Beatrice

It took some getting used to, the popularity, the seemingly endless amount of fellow volunteers, not to mention the constant praise. It took a long while for Esme Squalor to actually feel as comfortable as she acted outwardly. She never felt the need to interact with too many of the others, but she did keep to a small group of people;  
Georgina Orwell, an optometrist who’s home and office lay over by Lucky Smells Mill,  
Jacquelyn Scieszka, the current bank secretary. Also known as ‘R.’  
Kit Snicket, the last known female relative of Lemony Snicket,  
and Beatrice Baudelaire, the mysterious, the beautiful, and definitely the ‘Belle of the Ball’.  
Esme made sure she was always within seeing or hearing distance of at least one of the four, her nails clicking together nervously whenever one swept away and she was forced to find a new one, but eventually Beatrice caught on to the nervous financial advisor and when their eyes met, the taller of the two gave a small smile as she made her way over to the blonde.  
“Hello, You’re Esme correct--?” Beatrice spoke softly as she approached, one hand slowly extending in an offer to shake hands with the younger of the two. Blinking dumbly a few times, Esme quickly bowed her head and nodded, a flush overtaking her cheeks at the sight of such a beautiful woman. Esme quickly shook hands with Beatrice, her voice wavering as she spoke.  
“Y-yes, I’m Esme…” The younger girl paused, glancing to the side as she noticed a few pairs of eyes on her, but before she could see who, the younger woman was grasped by her wrist and quickly lead away, into the center of the dancing area where Beatrice quickly started to twirl the blonde around, dancing with a smile.  
“W-wait--” Esme was blushing furiously as other duos and couples around them gave winks, smiles and thumbs up.  
“Wait, Miss--!”  
“Beatrice!” The taller of the two smiled, giving Esme her name without a moment's hesitation.  
“Sorry for the abrupt change of scenery,” Beatrice chuckled, twirling the blonde as she sneakily brought them to the edge of the room beside a balcony, and after taking a quick glance to make sure no one was around; she swept Esme outside onto the balcony, the smaller blonde laughing softly as they slowed.  
“Well.. that was some introduction,” The smaller girl beamed slightly, a still wary glint in her eyes.  
“Well, I should hope so!” Beatrice quickly quipped back, linking arms with the smaller girl, their dresses meshing in such a perfect way, that Esme had to pause and stare at the different fabrics, the way the colors looked together.  
“Red and Black have always looked stunning together haven’t they?” Beatrice softly spoke, small smile in place and dark eyes glowing with affection. Esme couldn’t help herself from gazing up into the taller woman's eyes, her own softening.  
“I don’t understand why you brought me out here, or why you’re being so nice to me, but; thank you Miss Beatrice…” Esme spoke softly, a nervous smile spreading on her painted lips.  
The nail clicking started up again.  
“Well, Esme,” Beatrice started gently, her dark eyes glancing to the side slightly, then jumping back to lock with Esme’s.  
“I didn’t realize this was a sad occasion,” A smile grew on Beatrice’s lips, mischief glinting in the depths of her mocha eyes, the same mocha eyes that gaze deep into Esme’s own grey ones, the same pair of mocha eyes that are practically begging for Esme to say the next few words. Esme paused and furrowed her brows momentarily,  
“A sad--” She cut herself off, her entire face immediately lighting up with joy and realization.  
“The world is quiet here,” Esme finished, her voice a tad too cheerful for the response, but smiling anyway with a self-satisfied tilt of her head and a triumphant glow to her eyes.  
“Yes, it is isn’t it?” Beatrice beamed, glancing off behind Esme with a triumphant look of her own. Esme couldn’t resist her curiosity and whipped her head around to see who was there, only to catch sight of many people still dancing, and the heel of someone’s shoe as they rushed off to the side. The blonde woman furrowed her brows and turned back to Beatrice, mouth open and head full of questions when she found her lips being sealed shut by another pair of soft lips. Esme immediately closed her eyes, a dark flush overcoming her cheeks as she let herself be kissed by this woman who she had just met, her heart racing and head thundering with questions and thoughts, only for all of it to suddenly stop when Beatrice is ripped from her grasp.  
“Wha--” Esme’s eyes shoot open, her hands immediately shoot up to cover her lips as she sees Beatrice, laying on the ground with the silhouette of a man standing over her, a small pistol aimed to her head, and before Esme could speak the woman's name;  
Bang.  
The gun fired. Small splats of blood shot up in the air, turned blacker than the night sky surrounding them. The tall man turned, stared at Esme, and then walked away as she fell to her knees and screamed, people from inside rushing out to see what happened, and as Esme sat, head in her hands and sobbing, a thin hand reached down to snatch something shining off the ground, slipping it into Esme’s pocket as they kneeled beside the blonde, letting her turn to sob into their shoulder as the night continued on.  
Esme wouldn’t find until later that the small, shiny object she was now in possession of, would be only the beginning of her sorrows.


	2. Desperation

ii.   
Esme/Georgina

Months after the sudden and unexpected death of Beatrice, Esme had grown closer to VFD, swearing to avenge Beatrice one day. As time went on, she started to spend more and more time with Dr. Georgina Orwell, the older woman had taken had basically moved in with Esme, coming over on a near daily basis just to comfort her. However, as time went on, Georgina and Esme grew close, their relationship improving with every dumb joke, shared drink, and every hour spent with one-another. Good things never really last do they?

“Esme, honey, I really think you’ve had enough..” Georgina tried to reason, grasping the cup that was clenched in the sobbing blondes grasp.  
“No! No, don’t take it away from me Georgie!” The blonde woman sobbed, childlike and shakily. The financial advisor couldn’t handle alcohol well and was obviously past her limit. With a grunt, Georgina managed to pry the glass from the girl's hands.  
“Esme Gigi Genevieve Squalor,” Georgina started, glaring down sternly at the girl.  
“You are better than this.” The smaller of the two sighed, her bobbed, brown hair swishing a bit as she shook her head and slid onto the floor beside Esme.  
“B-but Georgie… it’s the only thing that helps,” The blonde sniffed, scrubbing at her swollen eyes and wiping at her nose.  
“If I don’t--” A hiccup. “Drink, then I, I can’t forget what happened,” The taller of the two wailed, leaning into Georgina’s warmth as the older woman embraced her, resting the blondes head on her chest.  
“Esme, I know it’s hard, but you have to forget,” She cooed.  
“I know you’re confused, and scared and definitely traumatized from seeing someone die in front of you like that… especially for the first time. Not to mention how sudden it was…” Georgina murmured, wincing as Esme pressed harder against her, her body bending slightly in ways it shouldn’t at her age.  
“Georgie.. Georgina,” Esme started, pulling away a bit, but still keeping one arm around the smaller woman.  
“Georgina, make me forget,” Esme said, her grey orbs boring into Georgina’s blue ones, a single tear slipping down her cheeks, and along with it, more of the girl's already streaked and smudged makeup.  
“Esme--” Georgina paused. “No, Esme, I can’t do that.”  
“Wh--” Esme pushed away, more tears falling down her cheeks, the sorrow was crushed out by a sudden rage.  
“What do you mean ‘N-No’?” Esme started, hoisting herself to a standing position, stumbling a bit and unable to keep proper balance.  
“Esme, I can’t do that to you, you’re drunk I--” Georgina tried to reason, standing as well. The brunette swayed slightly, but she was nowhere near as drunk, or as uncoordinated as Esme was in that moment.  
“What is it then? Why not?” Esme was growing frantic, arms flinging about, eyes bloodshot and puffy, and her voice growing in pitch.  
“Why hm? A-Am I too ugly? Is that it?” Esme was screeching by now, angry and confused tears running down her cheeks as she attempted to hit Georgina, only causing her to fall forward into said girl's arms.  
“Esme, Esme, honey please--!” Georgina begged, pulling the struggling girl as hard against her chest as she could.  
“Esme, listen to me!” The optometrist yelled. “Esme, you’re gorgeous ok? And I want to make you forget! I really do!” She continued, her voice lowering as Esme’s fighting subsided. One small, wrinkled hand rested on the back of Esme’s head, gently rubbing the back of the blondes head, still cradling her close.  
“I want to, but you’re drunk honey… I won’t do that without your full consent, whether that’s me hypnotising you or another way, I can’t.” She murmured softly into the girl's ears, pressing a small, soft kiss to the shell of Esme’s ear. The Blonde whined softly, wrapping her arms around the older womans neck, and pressing her flushed face into Georgina’s neck.  
“Georgie… I love you…” Esme murmured, her nails digging into the optometrists back, the brunette stiffening with the action and words.  
“I love you, I love you, I love, love, love you…!” Esme wailed out, pressing her lips to Georgina neck, nipping and licking at the spots sweetly.  
“Esme wait--” Georgina tried to protest, her fingers grasping onto the blondes arms about to push away, but quicker than the lightning outside struck, a loud crash rang through the room, startling the two girl's. Before the drunken women could speak, a body crashed through the room.  
A tall, dark, masculine figure. Esme was frozen still. Her heart beating wildly, tears silently falling from her eyes.  
It was him.  
The man that took Beatrice away from her.  
Esme opened her mouth to scream, to cry out, to do something, but her mouth was quickly covered by Georgina’s hand. Esme reached up and grabbed the woman's wrist, about to protest when Georgina leaned forward, kissed the side of Esme’s head and murmured into her ear.  
“Shhh… The world is quiet here…”  
Bang. The gun once again fired. Georgina’s entire body going slack as her warm, dying body lurched back into Esme’s arms. The last thing she heard was the soft, deep laughter of the dark figure in front of her. The man cocked his gun, seemed to fiddle with the ammo, and then shot.  
It was a quiet pop this time, signaling to Esme that the small, pin-prick she just felt wasn’t a bullet, and she reasoned it must have been a toxin of sorts as the world started to spin and her body lost all feeling. She collapsed in the bloody arms of Georgina Orwell. Her second love, and best friend.

 


	3. Suffocation

iii.   
Esme/Olivia

 

Esme thought visiting the Prufrock Prep would help. She thought going out to this small school out in the middle of nowhere would help her to relax and calm down. She thought it would bring back happy memories. It did, only for a while, but it did. As soon as the blonde reached the library however, things took a sudden turn.

The blonde gazed around, her eyes glazed over and her fingertips twitching when she finally found it. The Library. Holding her breath, the girl took a moment to take in the sight, before striding forward and throwing open the doors, her entrance dramatic as to hide the shaking in her fingers, the trembling of her arms.  
“Excuse me Ma’am?” Called a voice from nearby, a thin woman sat at a small desk near the doors, her large, brown, doe eyes gazed up from under her large, almost black frames.  
“Excuse me miss, but I don’t think--” The brunette started again, her eyes faltering slightly and her fingers moved from her glasses to her hair, fiddling with the base of her bun. The womans dark hair was a stark contrast from the white of her button up shirt.  
“I’m sorry,” Esme quickly apologised, fighting fiercely with herself to stop from regressing. The blonde’s fingers clenched tightly and her eyes quickly fell to the floor.  
“I didn’t know--” She stuttered.  
“I wasn’t aware that--” Her jaw clenched.  
“I’m sorry that I bothered you.” She quickly made out, turning on her heel to leave, only to be stopped by the soft grip of the woman’s hand around her wrist. Esme quickly snapped her gaze up to the librarian’s own, her soft, grey orbs melting with the deep amber orbs of the other woman's eyes. Esme took note of how the woman stopped her, leaning over her desk to reach, grabbing her wrist with an underlying of urgency. Esme shook it off for the time being.  
“No, you haven’t been a bother,” She quickly clarified, her hand hesitating to let go.  
“You can stay, if you would like to,” The Librarian smiled gently, letting go fully of Esme’s wrist. She seemed hopeful.  
“It gets quite lonely,” She offered, before gesturing around the library, her eyes soft and genuine. Esme couldn’t help but be both soothed and saddened by those eyes, reminding her of Georgina’s color, and Beatrice’s passion.  
“My name is Olivia Caliban, if you need anything, please don’t hesitate to call for me,” She smiled softly, sitting back down in her chair, and fixing a few strands of hair that fell from their place behind her ear.  
“Right,” Esme started softly, smiling gently, almost somberly, in response.  
“Thank you,” The blonde woman bowed her head gently, turning to head deeper into the labyrinth of books, when she froze, turned shly back to Olivia, gave a small, nervous smile and clicked her nails.  
“Um, Miss Olivia,” She started, gently toying with her creme pantsuit. The blonde’s eyes darting around slightly, landing back to Olivia momentarily before once again flitting around the rundown, yet barely used, library.  
“Could you, possibly, if it isn’t too much trouble..” She hesitated.  
“Show me where I could find books with, you know, not sad endings?” The financial advisor spoke softly, her eyes flicking down again and her cheeks flushing in embarrassment.  
“Oh, Yes, of course.” Olivia seemed exstatic regardless of the request, she seemed happy to just be useful to someone. The Librarian stood up once again, her back cracking in the process. She made her way quickly around the desk, and joined Esme with a smile. Holding her breath, Esme paused, glancing to the brunette with uncertainty in her grey eyes.  
“So, I’m not sure what exactly you’re looking for,” The brunette started, leading Esme around towards the back of the small, run-down looking library.  
“But, if you’re looking for romantic comedies, they’re that way,” She said, pointing down a row of books and continuing to walk past.  
“The normal comedies are here, and the fantasy is here,” The girl smiled, pointing in two different directions  
“I’m sorry for the small selection, Nero is ‘too busy’ to think twice about the library‘s needs.” Olivia sighed softly, rolling her eyes. Esme paused, thinking and then gave a smile.  
“Actually… I think I’m good, is it ok for me to, um,” The financial advisors faux confidence flew out the door as she met the girl's soft amber eyes again.  
“May I, I mean, would you care if…” The blonde clenched her jaw slightly, forcing up a smile and shoving away her fear.  
“May I be allowed to simply stay here in your company?” She asked, her fingernails clicked and clicked with the anxiety of the situation and Esme’s pure fear of rejection. Olivia immediately perked.  
“Oh! Yes, of course!” The younger of the two nodded, turning to lead the blonde back to the front desk of the library. Her amber eyes were alight with joy in finding a living person to communicate with, rather than a book or a photo of a certain deceased brother of a very famous family. Olivia grabbed a chair from one of the few tables as they made their way to the front, sliding it up beside the large desk and, without a pause, vaulting herself over the top of it, landing in her seat with a smile. Esme was impressed. Giving a chuckle or two at the display, the blonde slowly joined the other girl, lowering her body slowly into the seat that was drug up for her.  
“Sorry, it’s not the best of seating,” The brunette started, an embarrassed flush coming to her cheeks, her fingers immediately finding home in her bun.  
“But, hopefully it’s more comfortable than standing, especially in those heels,” Olivia added, gesturing through the desk to where Esme’s feet sat, pale as snow, except around the edges of the rubbery material, where her soft, pale feet turned pale red and sore with both past and blisters and small tears. Flushing in embarrassment, the financial advisor looked off to the side, clearing her throat and tucking her feet under the chair.  
“W-well.. Yes,” She awkwardly mumbled. The soft clicking filled her ears. The librarian took note of the reaction, thinking it strange, before shrugging it off.  
“Miss…” Olivia paused. She hadn’t gotten this stunning woman’s name yet had she?  
“Esme, Esme Squalor.” The blonde smiled nervously, offering the name without resistance.  
“Miss Esme,” Olivia continued, smiling at how pretty the name sounded, and how easy it rolled off her tongue.  
“Would you care to have dinner with me later?” She offered with a smile, her fingers fiddling with her skirt hem.  
“I can pay, and you’re the only person I’ve talked to in a while… I was hoping I’d be able to get to know you better?” She smiled bashfully now, her swell of confidence wavering slightly.  
Esme paused, took a deep breath, and smiled. The older of the two’s eyes were watery, her lip trembled slightly as she nodded.  
“Yes, Yes I’d enjoy that.” She continued nodding, even as the smile fell from her lips and she started to cry.  
“I would love that--” Her face was buried in her hands, her eyes screwed shut and her nails digging into her forehead.  
“-- so, so much.” She choked. Olivia immediately rose, reaching over to console the girl, when a loud bang interrupted her. Olivia immediately fell to the ground, clutching her shoulder.  
She had been shot.  
Hissing quietly in pain, the girl stayed as still as possible, swallowing harshly as she heard loud, clacking of footsteps, too big to be Esme or her own, approach the crying blonde.  
“Shhh…” The voice cooed darkly.  
“Just stay quiet, stop fighting, join me…” The voice menacingly growled. Olivia could only hear the shuffling of cloth, and what sounded to be a struggle, before the blood loss made her faint, the last words she could hear before she lost all consciousness would haunt her for months to come.  
“Don’t scream… The world is quiet here,”


	4. Deterioration

Esme/Olaf’s troupe + Carmelita (Platonic)

  
  


Esme was never going to be prepared for kids. She knew she never would be ready, but it seemed like she had no choice now, she didn’t know what else she could do as Count Olaf and Carmelita Spats stood before her expectantly, their eyes studying and degrading her with every second that went by. After a time, Carmelita smiled, looked up to Olaf, and gave the most enthusiastic nod Esme had seen since before the tall, scraggly man had murdered Beatrice. From that moment, against her will, Esme Squalor was forced to be part of this wretched duo, making it into a trio.

 

Red hair shone in the dim light of the room, curls bouncing as the small, pink clad girl danced around the room, her eyes dark and full of pure, evil intent. Lashing out with a hand, she shattered a vase on the floor, smiling in triumph at her actions. The loud noise echoed in the small room, jerking Esme out of unconsciousness, and into the waking world. Once she sat up, she looked down immediately to what had woken her, the blonde’s face twisted into a scowl at the shattered pieces on the floor.

“Really?” Was all she could muster out, before groaning and angrily throwing herself out of the bed and storming over to the mess, pushing Carmelita out of the way.

“I’m kidnapped out of my own will, and then shoved in this damn awful room, with a child of all things, and left with nothing in to keep myself sane!” The financial advisor started, she was yelling but not towards anyone.

“I’m going to kill myself in here before he returns!” She swore, her eyebrows furrowed angrily as she kicked the shards out of the small room, the base of the floor cracked and splitting with misuse.

“My hair is splitting and turning grey already,” She grumbled, side-glaring to Carmelita, who now sat on the rickety bed. It had been two weeks since Count Olaf, the man who had killed everyone she had been in contact with, --romantically or not-- had kidnapped her. Holding her hostage from no one. Esme sighed, her eyes casting down to the broken pieces that remained of the vase. She had stolen it from the library the day she was stolen from said area. While she currently had no idea where she was, but she could smell lumber, burnt wood, and the horrendous smell of rotting flesh. Esme tried to tune it out, tried to keep her mind from wandering and from thinking too hard, but just as she started to relax, the door was thrown open, Count Olaf twirling a ring of keys around and leaning in the door frame. Carmelita perked up and ran to him, a big smile on her face. Esme however, stayed put, her eyes slowly trailing to the man.

“Come. The car is here.” He simply said, his voice gruff as he turned around and left, Carmelita slowly trailing behind. Esme didn’t want to go. She shuffled in place, rolling her shoulders, before peaking out of the small room and immediately gasping. There were bodies everywhere. Decapitated, dismembered, stabbed, sliced, anything you could think of. Esme took a moment to wonder if any of them were still alive, writhing in agony and in desperate need of assistance, however, she did not stay to find out. Closing her eyes, Esme ran through the patches of dead bodies, opening her eyes briefly every-so-often to make sure she wasn’t going to run straight into the bodies. When she had finally made it out into the sun, she flinched. Biting her lip and hesitating before slowly prying them open again. Everything was on fire. Holding her breath, Esme swallowed harshly, her body frozen. She stared out past where she stood, her eyes meeting the large office of an optometrist. Esme begged to the gods above that it wasn’t the office of Georgina. Esme shut her eyes, slowly spun around, and looked up.

“Lucky Smells Mill.” The sign read. The blonde could feel her legs buckling, she stared at the sign as she fell to her knees in the dry dirt, tears welling in her grey eyes. Why her. Why now. The blonde was sobbing by now, her hands trembling as they crossed over her chest and her body hunched forward. The Gods didn’t care for Esme’s plea of sorrow.

“Let’s go, Yoko. The boss is waiting.” A tall man called out to her, his two hook hands hurt as they dug into the financial advisors arm. The blonde didn’t react to his words, allowing herself to be pulled upwards by the man and simply grabbing onto his hooks before he could leave her there.

“Hey, It’s alright, first time doing this is always rough,” He promised her, misunderstanding her sorrow. Esme just continued to sob, wiping at her eyes with one hand, and gripping onto the hook-handed mans hook for more stability as she trudged along beside him. When they finally reached the car, Esme insisted on sitting in the back with the others, refusing to be beside Olaf.

“Miss Esme, are you sure you don’t want front seat? You look kind of pale--” One of the white faced women started, her twin turning to look at Esme in turn.

“Yes, you look quite faint!” She interrupted, finishing for her sister. Esme felt annoyance bubble up inside her, she opened her mouth and glared at the two elderly women, about to snap at them when Carmelita pushed her way in.

“Nu-uh! She wants to stay back here with  _ me _ .” The small, redhead insisted, a smirk across her lips and a glint in her green-ish eyes. The older woman scrunched her nose, her eyes still glaring and her brows furrowed together, but before she could even start to retort, the car slammed to a stop. The blonde huffed in pain as her upper body was sent forwards, her stomach slamming into the center console.

“We’re here.” Olaf simply said, a smirk growing on his lips as he stared out ahead of them.

“Hotel Denouement.” He smiled wickedly, his eyes glowing with pure hate and excitement. Esme simply shrunk back as the others celebrated, leaping out of the car and preparing to head into the hotel. A strong dread set into Esme stomach. She closed her eyes, and willed this all to be a dream.

 


	5. Damnation

v.

The Fire

 

    It hurt. The flames on her skin, the people running and screaming, it made her afraid. Her skin stung, her eyes watered and tears streamed down her cheeks. It hurt. It hurt so much.

  


    It was impossible to say what genuinely started the entire downfall of Esme’s life, whether it was joining VFD, meeting Beatrice, her mothers abandonment of her, or just her own fault for being born, it can be said without a doubt, not even the most notorious of villains deserved what was happening to the poor woman. The blonde woman didn’t remember much of how the fire started, or even where she was or who she was with, but she did remember the screaming. The fear. The woman wasn’t thinking, she just did.

When the Alarms went off, people yelling and bolting down hallways, the girl followed suit, minus the screaming. She ran, and ran, and ran, reaching the pile up at the door just as the worse of the fire was reaching towards the kitchen area, which wasn’t too far from where the front door is.

    “Move!”

    “Hurry!”

    “Get out of my way!” people screamed out, among other profanities and curses. Esme didn’t join them. She stood back, staring in pure fear at the pile up. Her head started spinning and her thoughts went fuzzy as a panic attack consumed her. Tears welled in the woman's eyes as she stood there, blood roaring in her ears as her entire body swayed. Everything was blurry, she couldn’t hear, she couldn’t think, feel, see. Then suddenly it all stopped.

   

    Esme Squalor was used to many things. She was used to being yelled at, and yelling at others. She was used to bossing people around and being bossed around in turn. She had been used to waking up in the bed of 667 Dark Avenue, with Georgina Orwell by her side. What she wasn’t used to, was waking up in a hospital room, her body covered completely by casts and wraps. Swallowing harshly, Esme turned her head to look to her side, surprised to see a few familiar bodies in the room. The first person her eyes landed on was Olivia Caliban. Alive and well, the girl immediately smiled when she saw Esme’s grey eyes slowly pry open. As slowly and quietly as she could, she nudged the woman next to her, who Esme vaguely remembered to be Jacquelyn Scieszka. Opening her mouth to ask what had happened, a sudden realization hit her.

“You’re dead.” Esme stared point blank at Olivia. The brunette winced.

“You died when Olaf kidnapped me. He shot you,” she insisted, sitting up, as painful an act as it was. Olivia didn’t respond to Esme’s panicked words, and instead rushed forward and slowly forced Esme back into laying down. By this point, Jaquelyn had seen enough of the two dance around, and slowly strode over, keeping a straight face, and slowly knelt down to be in eye-line with Esme.

“Esme Squalor, I’m—“

“Jacquelyn Scieszka. I met you years ago. I was there the night Beatrice—…” Esme stopped, lowering her gaze and clamping her jaw shut. After a pause, Jacquelyn’s face softened, although only Olivia saw.

“Of course, My apologies, I didn’t know if you remembered me or not is all,” the dusty blonde offered, slowly, and gently, resting a gloved hand on Esme’s shoulder, giving a gentle squeeze, only for Esme to flinch harshly in response; a small whine of pain leaving her lips. Jacquelyn immediately pulled her hand away. She had forgotten about the burns. Shoulder still tense, Esme hissed through her teeth.

“What… happened.” She grit out, her stiletto nails digging into the sheets of the hospital bed, her heart monitor speeding up by a few more beeps per second.

“You—…” Olivia hesitated. She glanced to Jacquelyn with worry.

“I don’t what? Come on Darlings, I don’t have all day…” Esme grumbled, knowing full well she probably had weeks here.

“Esme.. do you really not remember what happened? Do you not remember the fire..?” The taller blonde commented, her gloved fingers seeming to toy with her jacket in an attempt to keep composed.

“Please, for the love of God just—“

“Olaf set the hotel on fire and escaped with the Baudelaire’s.” Olivia interrupted, her gaze immediately falling downwards. Esme sat in silence. She knew about the fire, but not of Olaf and the children. Swallowing, she shifted.

“And the others?” She tried.

“The Quagmires? They—“

“No, not the Quagmires… The others, Carmelita, The rest of the Troupe, The guests at the hotel, Dewey Denouement, his brother—“ Esme was cut off by the rustling of a newspaper, and Jacquelyn giving a sorrowful mimic of a cough. Looking over, she saw the headline.

 

_“No Survivors of Denouement Fire”_

 

”No.. survivors..?” Esme stared at the title, her eyes glossing over as she did. She glanced up at Jacquelyn, then Olivia.

“So… you’re telling me I’m dead? Is that how I can see Olivia? We’re both dead?” Esme concluded, her eyebrows furrowing as she started trying to accept this bizarre reality.

“What—?” Olivia immediately stopped her.

“No! Esme, god no!” She forced herself to keep from chuckling at the girl.

“No, none of us are dead,” she sighed, quickly becoming serious again.

“You almost died, however,” Jacquelyn piped in, her hip leaning against the bed, her greenish eyes boring down into Esme’s grey orbs.

“Then, why the hell does it say ‘ _No Survivors’_?” The platinum blonde hissed, annoyed at herself.

“Because no one saw you leave,” Jacquelyn smirked, leaning down, crossing her arms and resting them on the plastic on the side of the bed.

“So, Miss Ex-Financial Advisor, now that you’re ‘dead’,” The dusty blonde started, her eyes soft with an unusual kindness.

“You’ll be staying with us, I presume?” She offered to the hospitalized blonde, no scorn, no judgement, nothing showed in her eyes besides pure care. It took a few minutes, Esme battling with herself in order to figure out what to do, before glancing to Olivia. As soon as their eyes met, Esme had her choice.

“Ok. I mean, I don’t think I have anywhere else to go,” Esme smiled dully at the two other girl's in the room, her eyes drooping as a sudden exhaustion hit her. This time, when Esme fell asleep, It wasn’t due to chloroform, or fainting of fear. No, this time, it was on her own accord. She smiled softly as she drifted quickly into sleep, the last things she heard, instead of a gunshot, or cries, was a simple phrase.

“She’s quite cute when she’s tired, isn’t she…?”

 


	6. Salvation

Esme/Jacquelyn/Olivia + Baudelaires

  
  


It took a while to cope, and for the press to catch word of Esme’s survival, but she was healing. Slowly but surely Esme Squalor was healing, and she wasn’t doing it alone; she had Olivia and Jacquelyn by her side after all.

  
  


The sound of laughter and rustling woke Esme up. Slate eyes prying open tiredly and rolling around the empty, dim lit room. The door was open, and light poured in from the doorway and the window opposite the room. There were shelves of books, antiques, guns and other miscellaneous items in the shared room, the walls painted a soft, matte white color, everything in the room was mismatched due to the three women who occupied it. Groaning with distaste at being awake, and the mess of order in the room; Esme rolled over, burying her face under the blankets. She took a deep breath, and shut her eyes again, listening to the warm, soft sounds from downstairs, and letting herself relax. After a few minutes, the noises softened. Esme assumed her loving family had all calmed down, and sitting up, she stretched. Esme’s back arched, her eyes squeezing shut, and her taught, pale skin pulled tightly over her muscle, her ribs poking through a bit and her scarred skin uneven, yet still beautiful in the dim light. Esme didn’t take the time to check the room again, not noticing her two lovers and three children in the doorway as she stretched. Olivia stared at the older woman’s body as she stretched, a soft smile on her lips as she appreciated the woman’s skin, Jacquelyn following suit, but blocking the children’s eyes as she did. Once Esme had finished stretching, Olivia called out softly.

“Esme, Love,” She started, stepping into the room and motioning for the kids and the taller blonde woman to step inside. Esme turned, lifting the blankets up to hide her bare chest and cover as much skin as possible.

“Hmm, what is it Darlings?” She answered, smiling softly at her adorable family, her eyes still drooping a bit in exhaustion.

“How are you feeling,” Olivia started off, slowly sitting down on the edge of the bed, placing a hand on Esme’s blanket-clad thigh.

“Better,” The platinum blonde murmured, smiling still.

“Good enough to leave the house?” Jacquelyn gently probed, following Olivia and sitting on the other side of Esme.

“Mmm, I suppose,” The blonde woman hummed, her soft, grey eyes looking to the three Baudelaire children before her. She smiled, already knowing where this was going. Moving to sit on the edge of the bed, Esme pulled the blanket up, holding it up by her under arms and holding out her arms for the three children.

“C’mon Darlings,” She prompted happily,

“Cuddle with your Mothers for a bit, and then we can go out to any place you three want,” Esme promised, warmth spreading through her chest as the three children’s eyes lit up. Violet quickly found herself in Esme’s embrace, and smiled, sitting across the white haired womans lap sideways, and wrapping her own arms around Esme’s neck. Klaus sat between Esme and Jacquelyn, leaning his head on the taller blondes shoulder. The secretary smiled, wrapping one arm around the boy with a gentle smile, and rubbing his upper arm. Sunny, who was left with the last woman remaining, smiled brightly as she waddled over to Olivia, who effortlessly lifted her up from under her arms and into her lap, pressing a small kiss to the baby’s head.

They all sat like that for a while, enjoying one another’s company while relaxing. They were a functional family, they had fun, celebrated birthdays, rewarded good behavior ect. They were a normal, loving, strong, and ‘In’ family, and Esme wouldn’t have it any other way.

 

When the small family had finally gotten around, Esme clasped her hands together momentarily, before wandering over to the PA system they had installed. There were hidden speakers and a PA system in every room. Jacquelyn had convinced her to get them since the walkie-talkies were ‘Ineffective, and broke too easily’. Esme was glad she listened.

“Darlings, I’m in the kitchen, does anyone want anything to drink?” The white haired woman spoke politely, her smile evident in her voice. She waited for a few moments, sipping on her own tea she had made --’In’-ness be damned-- and sighed contentedly. Esme was about ready to make another call, when one of the PA’s buzzed back in.

“Esme, sweetheart, are you still in the kitchen?” Olivia’s breathless voice came on the PA, she sounded somewhat worried, but Esme could hear small chuckles in the background.

“Mhmm,” Esme simply hummed into the small, microphone in response, her finger tracing around the button gently as she waited for the almost instantaneous response.

“Ah, good, sweetheart, Jacquelyn and the kids ran off, I think we’re playing hide-and-seek,” Olivia spoke, sighing into the mic. Esme couldn’t help but chuckle at that, rolling her eyes affectionately.

“Right, so, would you like anything to drink, Darling? You sound like you’re in need of something.” Esme responded quickly, alreading walking away to grab a few bottles of water from the fridge.

“Water, please?” Olivia replied, a smile in her voice and gratefulness on her tongue. Esme made her way back to the PA system and pressed the button.

“I’ll bring a couple bottles for you, what room are you in, Darling.” Esme spoke, gathering the waters into her arms and getting ready to leave the room.

“I’m in the large living room, the one with the fireplace.” Olivia immediately spoke

“I think Jacquelyn and the kids ran off towards the bathroom…?” The brunette finished, trailing off, unsure of herself. Esme simply chuckled and made her way out of the kitchen, through one of the many dining rooms, and down the main hall, weaving her way through a few more rooms until she reached the outside of the room Olivia claimed to be in. Sighing, Esme pushed open the door with her non-scarred shoulder, smiling as she looked around the room for the librarian.

“I’m here, Darling.” Esme called out, walking over to the couches and setting the water down on the coffee table. Turning around, Esme was surprised to see everyone in the room, Olivia’s face flushed, Jacquelyn smiling triumphantly, and the three children beaming with excitement. Esme turned her head slightly, eyeing the small group warily.

“Olivia, darling,” Esme started, looking over to the red-faced woman.

“I thought the four of them had went to hide?” Esme asked, her voice more curious than anything.

“W-well I, You see--” Olivia’s stuttering was cut off as Jacquelyn stepped forward, wrapping her arms around Esme’s neck, Violet, Klaus, and Sunny following, wrapping their arms around the girl in whatever area they could reach. Esme was slightly uncomfortable, she had no idea what was going on.

“Esme,” Jacquelyn softly murmured, Olivia quickly taking her place and wrapping her arms around Esme’s waist from behind.

“We love you, all of us, and we care so much about you,” They started to pull away, the kids scurrying behind Olivia and Jacquelyn, who stood side by side, hands behind their backs. Esme was starting to panic. Had she done something wrong? Are they breaking up with her? Do they hate her? The blonde started to hyperventilate softly as her thoughts raced.

“Olivia and I…” The taller of the three glanced to the youngest.

“We wanted to know if…” The librarian paused, biting her lip.

“Will you marry us?” They both finished in unison, Olivia bringing an engagement ring forward, and Jacquelyn presenting a small, chain necklace. Esme stopped.

“What…?” The white haired woman was trembling, her eyes watering and her lips wavering.

“Darlings, what--?” She cut herself off as she started to cry, her body shaking as she fell back into one of the couches. The two other women grew slightly concerned, about to take back their words, when the financial advisor started to laugh, smiling brightly as she continued to cry.

“Of course,” She choked.

“Of course I’ll marry you two,” Esme couldn’t stop her laughter, hugging the two of them as they lunged to her.

“Oh, you gave me a great scare,” The white haired woman sniffed, allowing the two women to place their respected jewelry on her.

“I thought, well, I was afraid that you two were about to leave me or something!” She finished, still laughing softly and wiping away her tears. The three Baudelaire children ran up to their three adoptive mothers, making sure to squeeze into the hug pile.

“Oh, no, Esme, we would never!” Olivia insisted, pulling the pale woman closer to her as she pressed a kiss to the financial advisors forehead.

“Trust me, Esme,” Jacquelyn started, taking the woman’s hand in her own.

“If we were going to break up with you, it wouldn’t be in front of the Baudelaire’s,” she murmured softly, running her thumbs over Esme’s knuckles.

“We love you, Esme.” They said in unison, smiling and chuckling a bit as they both leaned into Esme, the two younger women hugging their girlfriend tightly.

“I love you both as well…” Esme returned with, reaching out one arm towards the Baudelaire’s.

“Now come on darlings, sit down and let the kids come and cuddle with us,” Esme spoke, her voice a lot softer, and filled with love. She was so happy. Happier than she had been in years. Once the Baudelaire’s wriggled in between everyone, and Olivia and Jacquelyn had settled down, everyone sat in a comfortable silence, only the soft humming of Esme broke the soft, light silence in the air.

“Thank you all, for allowing me to be happy…” Esme Squalor, the Cities sixth most important financial advisor softly spoke, her blonde curls creeping to cover her pink face as tears softly started to stream from her cheeks, a large smile across her lips.

“You are the best things to ever happen to me.” She softly murmured, pressing her face into Olivia Caliban's neck, her grip on Violets waist tightening as the eldest Baudelaire wrapped her own around Esme, hugging her adoptive mother tightly.

“Don’t thank us for this Esme, you deserve this happiness.” Jacquelyn offered softly, reaching over to run her fingers through Esme’s hair.

“You deserve the world…”

 


End file.
